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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30060825">Built, Burned, and Re-Built Bridges</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/BroadwayBookworm/pseuds/BroadwayBookworm'>BroadwayBookworm</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Miraculous Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Is Sunshine, Alya Césaire Bashing, Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Chloé Bourgeois Redemption, Gen, Good Chloé Bourgeois, Lesbian Chloé Bourgeois, Lila Rossi salt, Lila Rossi's Lies Are Exposed, Minor Chloé Bourgeois/Kagami Tsurugi, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:54:25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,151</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30060825</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/BroadwayBookworm/pseuds/BroadwayBookworm</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been two years since Marinette was expelled and transferred to a new school. Two years since Adrien went back to homeschooling. Two years since Chloé started going to a private school. Two years since Jeluka moved away. And during those two years, Francoise Dupont High School had been eating out of Lila's hand. </p><p>But Lila slips up and suddenly the whole string of lies is exposed. Alya, Nino, Alix, and Kim know that they have to apologize to their old friend. But when they go over to her house, they find something rather unexpected. </p><p>Since when was Chloé Marinette's best friend?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir &amp; Chloé Bourgeois, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir &amp; Juleka Couffaine, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Chloé Bourgeois &amp; Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Juleka Couffaine &amp; Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>586</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Built, Burned, and Re-Built Bridges</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As Lila walked out of the principal's office with tears in her eyes, Alya, Nino, Alix, and Kim watched her walk with sad expressions on their faces. They had trusted Lila, but it was clear that she had caused them to betray one of their oldest and best friends. </p><p>"We have to apologize," Kim said. "I can't believe how terrible of friends we were to Marinette."</p><p>"Right after school," Alya said. "We'll go over to her house and say sorry."</p><p>The four of them agreed to meet up at the front entrance and spent the rest of the day waiting for the bell to chime. The moment it did, they got out of their seats and ran too the front entrance, bags in hand. </p><p>Alix had her rollerblades so she rolled next to them and ahead of them as they walked to the Dupain-Cheng bakery. They discussed what they would say to her and wondered if it was even a good idea. But they knew Marinette and they knew that she would forgive them. So when they reached on the bakery they knocked on the door with confidence. </p><p>"I'll get it, Mari, we all know you're too busy!" a female voice rang. They heard a soft thump as some people inside laughed. </p><p>"Does she have people over?" Alix wondered. </p><p>The door was flung open and they found themselves face to face with none other than Juleka Couffaine. </p><p>"Juleka?" Alya asked in disbelief. </p><p>In a second, Juleka's face morphed from happiness to confusion. "Um, Mari? You might want to quit cuddling with Adrien. There's some people here to see you." </p><p>They peered over her shoulder where they could clearly see Adrien and Marinette sitting together on the couch. Sprawled on the floor was a redheaded girl who was eating a bowl of chips. </p><p>"Just bring them in, I'm tired," Marinette yelled, not looking at the door.</p><p>The redhead laughed. "Oooh, you know, Adrien also seems a little sleepy also. Is there something we should know about you two?"</p><p>There was another soft thump as Marinette threw a pillow at her. Juleka led the four of them inside and said, "Take of your shoes, Auntie Sabine doesn't like it when people wear shoes inside her house."</p><p>Adrien looked over in their direction and his eyes widened. "Oh shoot. Mari, you might want to be standing up for this conversation."</p><p>Detaching herself from Adrien, Marinette stood up and finally saw them. "What are you doing-"</p><p>She was cut off by the sound of the door slamming open. Everyone turned to look and to see Chloé Bourgeois open up Marinette's fridge, pull out some ice cream, and start eating it straight from the container with a spoon. She didn't acknowledge the new people but instead waved at Juleka, hip checked Marinette, fist-bumped Adrien, and stole some chips from the redhead's bowl before grabbing the remote and sitting down on the floor.</p><p>Marinette turned back to look at her old classmates. "As I was saying, what are you doing here?"</p><p>Alya shook her head. "Chloé just stole your ice cream and hip checked you, why don't you ask <i>her</i> what <i>she's</i> doing here?"</p><p>"Chloé's here all the time," the redhead said as she crunched on chips. "I'm Elodie, by the way, but everyone calls me Di." </p><p>"I'm Kim," he said. "This is Alya, Nino, and Alix. We're old friends of Marinette's."</p><p>A snicker escaped Chloé's mouth. "Oh yeah, you guys were the most fantastic friends when Lila came along."</p><p>Alix rolled her eyes. "You're one to talk, Chloé. You tormented Marinette for years."</p><p>"I was a repressed Lesbian with a secret crush on her," Chloé said, waving her hand in the air. "Luckily I went to therapy, made up with Marinette, and ceased to have feelings for her. Which was fantastic timing on my part seeing as Loverboy," she pointed in Adrien's direction, "finally woke up and confessed."</p><p>"And now they're like, best friends," Juleka said. "Two little chaos gremlins, wrecking havoc."</p><p>Alya tilted her head. "Juleka, I thought you moved away."</p><p>She shrugged. "I'm only a school district away. It's rather easy for me to get here. Not that any of you cared to find out my new address."</p><p>"And Adrien, aren't you homeschooled?" Nino asked. </p><p>He nodded. "Yeah. But Nathalie let's me come over here after I'm done with school. She's been surprisingly chill recently, probably because Marinette is the sweetest person alive."</p><p>Kim shook his head and said, "Regardless, we came here to apologize." </p><p>"Awesome," Marinette said. "Are you done?"</p><p>Alya was speechless. "Marinette we were awful to you and now we're saying sorry."</p><p>"That's great. Are you finished? Because I'm not forgiving you guys. I spent half of freshman year trying to defend myself against that girl but all of you decided that I was the bully. Most of you have known me for years, but you still believed her over me. And now that her lies are exposed, you want me back again? No thank you. I've made some great friends at my school and to be honest, they're better than you. So are you finished?"</p><p>Everyone stood in silence. Alya was stunned. In her mind, it was Marinette who had the problem here, not her. Yet something in the back of her brain nagged her and asked if Marinette was right to not forgive them. </p><p>The silence was broken by Chloé's high pitched laughter. "Yes, queen! Tell them off!" </p><p>Slowly, the four of them left the bakery, each sparing a lingering glance at Marinette hoping that she would change her mind. </p><p>She didn't. </p><p>Instead, she went over to the couch and sat down next to Adrien, sighing heavily. "I'll probably forgive them later."</p><p>"But let them stew for like, a week or two. Make the guilt eat away at them," Chloé said with a smile as she kept eating her ice cream.</p><p>Di laughed and grabbed the remote from Chloé. "You, ma'am, are evil."</p><p>Chloé flipped her hair. "I've had a lot of practice at being a bitch."</p><p>With a click of the remote, Di switched the channel to a teen drama and checked her watch. "Hey, Chloé. Isn't your date with Kagami in like, thirty minutes?"</p><p>"Shit," Chloé cursed. "Marinette, mind if I steal some of your stuff for tonight?"</p><p>Marinette shrugged. "Sure, just don't take any of my favorites. </p><p>She ran up the stairs. "Thanks, Mari. See ya in a bit, losers."</p><p>Juleka laughed. "Just go get ready, you brat." She sat down on the floor next to Di and finished off Chloé's ice cream. </p><p>Adrien grinned. "To be honest, Mari getting expelled, Juleka moving away, Chloé going to an all-girls school, and me becoming homeschooled again was probably one of the best things that has ever happened to us."</p><p>"I'm certainly glad it happened," Di said. "Or else we all might have never come together like this."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Screw the season three finale for taking away Chloé's character development. Screw the show for not giving Marinette significant development. Screw the writer for forgetting that Chloé and Adrien were/are best friends.</p><p>Also, Jeluka rocks. Make her more of a main character.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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